Arknights: Studying medicine can't save Terra

"Sir, please don't misunderstand. We are all companions, and what we were just doing was just playing around."

Master Shang looked at the two sisters hugging each other with a 'you're kidding me' expression and said, 'You two drew your knives on two weak women in this desolate mountain, and you call this playing around?'

And I just heard several screams, one of which even sounded like someone falling off a cliff. You'd better not tell me that the girl who fell off the cliff climbed back up.”

Taihe: "...You've already told me everything, what else can I say?"

He was not a good talker to begin with, and now that the truth had been revealed by the other party, he was even more at a loss for words.

Wu You stepped forward at the opportune moment, cupped his hands in greeting to Master Shang, and explained:

"Senior, please don't be nervous. We are truly not bad people. The gentleman next to me, Mr. Taihe, is an official appointed by the imperial court. How could he possibly..."

"The imperial court? Hmph!"

It would have been better if Wu You hadn't mentioned the imperial court, because the moment he did, Master Shang became even more indifferent: "I'm sorry, I'm just a crude country bumpkin. I only know Lord Shang Shuliang, and I don't know any officials of the imperial court."

"Well, I'm here. And... although I'm just the prefect of Shangshu, I'm a fourth-rank official, so I can at least be considered an official appointed by the imperial court."

Liang Xun, who had been relatively unknown, spoke up weakly from the corner.

Master Shang: ? ? ?

Liang Xun couldn't help but smile wryly as he stepped forward from the corner, making sure Master Shang could see him clearly.

If he could, Liang Xun wouldn't want to go up the mountain in the middle of the night.

However, Qi Yan held onto his sleeve tightly and forcibly pulled him along.

All the way there, Liang Xun was worried that Ning Ciqiu would be disturbed by the thunder and would definitely go to the Liang residence to look for him. If he couldn't find him, he would inevitably feel anxious.

At this moment, Liang Xun unexpectedly encountered a powerful mountain strongman who only recognized him as the local official. He couldn't help but suspect that Qi Yan had forcibly brought him along for this very moment.

The mere thought sent a chill down Liang Xun's spine, and he secretly marveled at Qi Yan's flawless strategy.

While he was thinking these things, Liang Xun didn't slow down his speech:

"Sir, this is really a misunderstanding. We were just joking around with these two ladies because... these two ladies have a special status, and this kind of joke is not out of line."

"Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!" Nian shouted loudly, "Qi Yan wants to eat at our sisters' feast!"

Liang Xun, aren't you even going to put on an act of favoring Qi Yan? And Zuo Le, aren't you from the Si Sui Tai? Why are you just watching?!

When Zuo Le's name was called, having already suffered several setbacks, he learned his lesson this time and turned to look at Tai He first.

Seeing Taihe shake his head at him, Zuo Le immediately ignored Nian's clamor and stood obediently in place as his background.

Master Shang's gaze became somewhat blank, and his originally rugged face unconsciously took on a somewhat simple and honest look.

He still believed Liang Xun's guarantee.

Liang Xun noticed the change in Master Shang's attitude and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Judging from this man's attire, are you a porter from the mountains? Why are you still walking in the mountains so late?"

"Your Excellency, I received a job and led my client up the mountain overnight," Master Shang replied honestly. "But just as we reached the mountainside, we heard a woman's scream from behind. My kind-hearted client temporarily put aside his mission and turned back to rescue her."

Some unexpected things happened during that time... In short, I arrived first thanks to the stamina I had developed from years of hiking in the mountains.

Fortunately, it was all a misunderstanding; it was a false alarm.

After speaking, Master Shang paused, then couldn't help but ask again, "So, did the woman who fell really climb back up on her own?"

Liang Xun nodded with a wry smile, turned around and pointed at Nian, preparing to ask Master Shang to come closer and check on Nian's dusty appearance.

But Nian, now completely absorbed in acting, suddenly threw herself against the side of the plank road and began wailing and crying:

"My poor little melon sister, I told you not to walk up the mountain at night, but you insisted on going against me. Now look what happened, you've run into a bunch of bad guys and gotten yourself into trouble!"

Master Shang: "..."

Liang Xun: "..."

He looked at Master Shang awkwardly, realizing that even he couldn't quite explain it this time.

If things continue like this, nothing anyone does will change anything... Wait, maybe someone else can help.

Liang Xun turned his head and looked at Qi Yan with pleading eyes.

Qi Yan received the distress signal under Chen's armpit, patted Chen's waist, and signaled her to let go of him.

After regaining his freedom, Qi Yan straightened up, rubbed his face, and turned to look at Xi.

The two then nodded simultaneously, rushed forward, and together pushed Nian, who was showing off his acting skills on the side of the plank road, off the road again.

The screams with their perfectly gradient sound effects faded away in the blink of an eye.

Master Shang stared in disbelief at everything before him.

"Big Xigua, remember to add a new title to Nian's epitaph later: King of Falls!"

"Great title!"

The two gave each other a high five in a pleasant exchange, and then Qi Yan's gaze fell on Master Shang.

At this moment, Master Shang subconsciously took a step closer to the stone wall.

"Don't be afraid, Master Shang, I, Qi Xiaobai, am not some kind of murderous maniac." Qi Yan stepped forward with a smile.

Master Shang's facial muscles twitched twice, and he was about to ask Liang Xun for help when he suddenly caught a glimpse of the frost knife tied with a white tablecloth in Qi Yan's hand.

He hadn't paid much attention before because he was too eager to save lives, but now he recognized Frostblade at a glance.

"Why is this knife in your hands?" Master Shang asked sternly.

Qi Yan played with the frost knife in his hand and laughed, "Master Shang is still the same Master Shang. If I'm not mistaken, you must have already met Zheng Qingyue on your way here."

However, saving lives always comes first in Master Shang's heart, and he's even willing to temporarily set aside past grievances for that.

Master Shang's expression completely changed: "How did you know all this?"

"Not only do I know these things, but I also admire you, Shang Jiagun, Shang Zhong."

Qi Yan directly revealed Master Shang's background, and even held up the Frost Blade in front of Master Shang: "Who do you think arranged for Zheng Qingyue to be on this mountain road at night?"

Shangzhong's pupils contracted to a single point as he asked warily, "What are you going to do?"

"I'll kill Zheng Qingyue for you," Qi said coldly.

"why?"

"Because I also agree with the principle of saving lives first, I feel very uncomfortable with those who sacrifice their companions' lives for the sake of so-called rules and morality."

Qi Yan revealed a set of gleaming white teeth, his smile radiant in the night: "During that rainy night escort mission, Zheng Qingyue believed in the principle of 'saving the goods first, then the people,' which led to the tragic deaths of your son and Du Yaoye's father."

You've remembered this all along, and now, your chance for revenge has arrived. Tonight, no one can stop you from taking your revenge on Zheng Qingyue.

Shangzuka unconsciously clenched his teeth and bluntly refused:

"This is absurd. Your appearance and reasons are beyond my comprehension. I am unwilling to do this. Please leave."

"You don't want to?"

Upon receiving this response, Qi Yan's smile gradually faded.

He spoke coldly again: "Unfortunately, I, Qi Xiaobai, hate the feeling of plans falling through. If you are unwilling, I will take action for you tonight."

"You are no match for him." Shang Zhong glanced at Qi Yan a few times and said with certainty.

"What do you think is the purpose of me gathering so many experts along with me, and even bringing Lord Liang Xun along?"

Qi Yan drew his frost-covered blade slightly from its sheath, admiring the cold gleam of the blade in the night: "Tonight, he will surely die."

Shang Zhong looked at Liang Xun in disbelief, only to find the latter looking thoughtful and making no comment.

In this situation, not making a statement is the clearest statement one can make.

A surge of inexplicable anger rose within him, and Shang Zhong suddenly exerted force with his feet, instantly blocking everyone's path up the mountain.

"Gentlemen, if you want to touch Zheng Qingyue, you'll have to get past me first!"

Shang Zhong slammed the carrying pole in his hand onto the stone steps of the plank road. The hard bluestone steps shattered inch by inch under the impact, and one end of the carrying pole sank several inches into the stone.

Those skilled in martial arts, including Wu You and Tai He, could see the profound power contained in this strike, and a look of amazement flashed in their eyes, but none of them showed any concern.

Shangzhong forced a straight face, but found that his attack had not intimidated his opponent, and felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

The carrying pole in his hand was not the family heirloom that had accompanied him on his travels; it was just an ordinary bamboo pole that was already showing signs of crumbling after that last blow, let alone being used to fight against so many experts.

Qi Yanshuang drew his sword completely, stepping into the night, and advanced with the blade in hand:

"Shangzhong, I'll ask you one last time, do you really want to protect Zheng Qingyue?"

"He shouldn't have died at your hands!" Shang Zhong said, forcing himself to speak. "He did nothing wrong back then! I just have grievances in my heart, but that doesn't mean I deny the镖局 (bodyguard agency) and Zheng Qingyue. Your Excellency, don't force me!"

"You'll only be able to harm Zheng Qingyue tonight if you step over the corpse of my Shang Tomb!"

Qi Yan suddenly stopped and gestured at the scabbard for a long time before finally aligning it with the hole. He awkwardly inserted the Frost Blade back into the scabbard.

He didn't understand what Qi Yan was up to.

"Ahem." Liang Xun kindly reminded him, "Master Shang, behind you."

Shangzhong turned his head blankly, then stood there awkwardly.

Zheng Qingyue, with his daughter, and Lao Li had quietly appeared not far away at some point.

"...Did you hear what was said just now?" Shangzhong asked with difficulty.

Zheng Qingyue nodded silently, his expression complex.

Shang Zhong's wheat-colored face suddenly flushed red.

Chapter 857 Unresolved Grudges

A silence fell over the plank road, broken only by the rustling sounds of Nian climbing up the valley again.

Shang Zhong, his face flushed, argued, "Zheng Qingyue, what I just said..."

Zheng Qingyue nodded, preventing Shang Zhong from reiterating his statement.

But Shangzuka gritted his teeth and continued, his neck stiff:

"I know you understand, but this isn't something that can be explained simply like reason. I have a grudge in my heart that I can't swallow!"

Zheng Qingyue nodded again.

His gaze was calm as he moved away from Shang Zhong, swept over everyone present, lingered briefly on Du Yaoye, and finally settled on Qi Yan.

A standard cupped-hand salute.

Zheng Qingyue respectfully said to Qi Yan, "Young Master Qi, I have come to my senses. I hope you will return the Frost Blade. I am willing to die, my only wish is to spend my final journey with this Frost Blade by my side."

The frost knife was thrown out.

Zheng Qingyue stepped forward and caught the old buddy that had accompanied him on his journey through the martial world for many years.

The blade made a soft clattering sound as it swayed in its scabbard, as if responding to the return of an old friend.

"Shangzhong, that rainy night, I abandoned many of the镖局's镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) to protect the goods."

The frost-covered blade was drawn, reflecting the swordsman's face.

"But in the end, you failed to protect the goods and the reputation of the escort agency."

The bluish bamboo was pulled from the stone, with the slightly broken end pointing at the frost knife in front of it.

In early spring, in the mountains, the first rays of dawn are breaking, and the stars are dim.

In the darkest moment of the world, two figures assumed an attack stance.

What are you two trying to do?!

A sharp, angry shout blocked the way between the two.

Du Yaoye couldn't understand what these two old guys were so stubborn about, and he couldn't understand why they wanted to fight to the death as soon as they met.

"Ye'er, move aside," Zheng Qingyue said in a deep voice.

"In this situation, you expect me to step aside?" Du Yaoye retorted angrily. "If someone wanted to kill me, would you step aside?"

Zheng Qingyue's breath hitched.

"So you are Du Yaoye?" Shang Zhong suddenly said, "You've grown so much."

Upon hearing Shang Zhong's words, Du Yaoye turned around, her anger intensifying.